House to Home

When it comes to selling your house, one of the keys to making it happen is hiring the right listing agent. The agent that will work hard for you, keep you in the loop and advise you in the correct steps to take. But did you know that you can be working against your agent? Here are some things that, according to an article on Realtor.com, you could be doing that would keep your home from selling.

It’s a Monday. It’s the Monday after Superbowl Sunday. It is 20 degrees and cloudy, where I am. I think we could all use a little bit of sunshine today! So, join me as I dream of spring, flip flops, and warm rays beckoning us to soak them up with a glass of iced tea in hand! We are going to look at some of the happiest sun rooms and think about our future full of sunshine and summer memory making!

If you couldn’t get ahold of us last Thursday, it was likely because we were celebrating the accomplishments of the Stockton Mortgage Corporation and its employees! We had just under 100 employees show up to celebrate everyone’s successes at The Olmsted in Louisville, KY. Together, we enjoyed a wonderful catered meal and even better association with one another.

If you are planning to sell your home in the coming year, you are hopeful that it will sell quickly, no doubt! According to an article published by Realtor.com, “Today's buyers have very particular tastes and turnoffs that could mean your home gets snapped up fast, or sits on the sidelines.” They go on to include tips which can contribute to selling your home faster!

According to Marriam-Webster, Escrow is defined as “a deed, a bond, money, or a piece of property held in trust by a third party to be turned over to the grantee only upon fulfillment of a condition”. When it comes to the purchase of real estate, no matter what role you play—the buyer, seller, lender or borrower, you want to make sure that all the instructions in the transaction have been followed before the money exchanges hands. That is what the escrow holder does. They safeguard the funds and disburse them on only when all provisions of the escrow have been met.

Bear with me everyone, my husband and I have decided to sell the first home we purchased together and move into what I have deemed “my dream home”. What this means for you is that I will probably reflect a lot of this process in my future blogs… just wait until spring, I have so many thoughts about the garden… But first, we must sell our current house! This is the first time I’ve ever attempted to sell a house and have been doing a lot of research about how to best prep my home to make others want to live there (staging). I thought I’d share with you all what I have found out along the way!

When selling your home, it is no longer just about your preferences but instead about trying to appeal to your buyer. Unfortunately, you can’t appeal to everyone’s senses but you can follow these rules outlined by Debbie Drummond when it comes to the exterior of your home. She states, “the color scheme of a house should be appropriate for its architectural style and allow it to be comfortable in its community.” When you update your home’s exterior with a fresh coat of paint, you are setting it apart from others on the market and will give your home a polished and clean look that will appeal to buyers.

Stop! Breathe in. Exhale – before you really begin to dig into the process that is selling your home, take a moment to consider how much of a hurry you are in to sell. Selling your home is a big deal – don’t rush it! No doubt, you are eager to get your home on the market, and depending on your situation, you could be desperate to get it out of your hands - but rushing in the beginning will usually only cause you setbacks and lengthen the process.